Rurouni Kenshin Forum FAQ

First of all, I want to welcome you all to the Rurouni Kenshin forum ^_^x

What is Rurouni Kenshin? (warning: contains some spoilers)

That guy! said:

Created by Watsuki Nobuhiro, Rurouni Kenshin is about a blood-thirsty samurai gone good named Himura Kenshin. The storyline takes place back in in Japan in 1878, the eighth year of the Meiji era. The show is based off of an actual Hitokiri named Kawakami Gensai. The Hitokiri were a group of warriors who fought for the Ishin government during the Bakumatsu, a great war which took place from 1853 to 1868. Gensai was a short man with long hair, kind of like Kenshin and his main stance is a lot like Kenshin's, "the right leg is extended in front, knee slightly flexed, while the left leg is folded with the knee touching the ground. One slash with the right hand, and that's it." Anyways, Gensai unlike Kenshin was killed because the Meiji Government considered him a nuisance. I'm rambling... But the Hitokiri Battousai in the show Rurouni Kenshin changed his views, reversed his Katana(so it couldn't kill anyone) and became the wandering Rurouni who devoted his life to helping the weak to attone for his sins. One problem that arises from the beginning of the series, though, is that Kenshin has many adversaries who try to convert him back to his Hitokiri ways, and try to piss him off to accomplish this. Himura always seems to counter this by converting many of his enemies, and turning many of them into allies.

Click to expand...

Hitokiri_Gensai said:

he wasnt really blood thirsty...he hated to kill but he did it "to bring peace to the world" actually between a conversation with Katsura Kogorou:

Katsura: So that was the Hiten Mitsurugi School? Ive heard rumors of it but i didnt know it existed...but let me ask you something...have you ever killed anyone with this Hiten Mitsurugi Ryuu?"
Kenshin: no
Katsura: Do you think you could?
Kenshin: : If with my own dirty sword and the lives I take, I could pave the way for a new era in which all can live in peace...

so as you can see he wasnt an assassin for the sake of being one he was one to try to bring peace to a caotic world...when he was younger he witnessed he death of his adopted sisters by ronins. two year after the beggining of th bakumatsu the system in which the government protected people on major roads had broken down and ronins began to attack groups of people and rob them...

Hitokiri Battousai lost his title as Shadow Hitokiri to a man who was far more dangerous in the fact that he cared only to be ordered around so that he could show off his skills with a sword...he was a power hungry man and would stop it nothing to be able to rule Japan...Hitokiri Battousai moved into Kyoto as a protector to the Ishin groups stationed there...he fought many of the Kyoto Miwari gumi as well as the Shinsengumi...in the end after the battle for Toba Fushimi Hitokiri Battousai left his killers sword and slipped into the darkness...he recieved the sakabatou from swordsmith Shakku...he began life over as a wandering samurai or "rurouni" which is a fitional word with a meaning close to "wanderer" wielding the sakabatou he will let no one die before him…

he wasnt really blood thirsty...he hated to kill but he did it "to bring peace to the world" actually between a conversation with Katsura Kogorou:

Katsura: So that was the Hiten Mitsurugi School? Ive heard rumors of it but i didnt know it existed...but let me ask you something...have you ever killed anyone with this Hiten Mitsurugi Ryuu?"
Kenshin: no
Katsura: Do you think you could?
Kenshin: : If with my own dirty sword and the lives I take, I could pave the way for a new era in which all can live in peace...

so as you can see he wasnt an assassin for the sake of being one he was one to try to bring peace to a caotic world...when he was younger he witnessed he death of his adopted sisters by ronins. two year after the beggining of th bakumatsu the system in which the government protected people on major roads had broken down and ronins began to attack groups of people and rob them...

Hitokiri Battousai lost his title as Shadow Hitokiri to a man who was far more dangerous in the fact that he cared only to be ordered around so that he could show off his skills with a sword...he was a power hungry man and would stop it nothing to be able to rule Japan...Hitokiri Battousai moved into Kyoto as a protector to the Ishin groups stationed there...he fought many of the Kyoto Miwari gumi as well as the Shinsengumi...in the end after the battle for Toba Fushimi Hitokiri Battousai left his killers sword and slipped into the darkness...he recieved the sakabatou from swordsmith Shakku...he began life over as a wandering samurai or "rurouni" which is a fitional word with a meaning close to "wanderer" wielding the sakabatou he will let no one die before him...

Created by Watsuki Nobuhiro, Rurouni Kenshin is about a blood-thirsty samurai gone good named Himura Kenshin. The storyline takes place back in in Japan in 1878, the eighth year of the Meiji era. The show is based off of an actual Hitokiri named Kawakami Gensai. The Hitokiri were a group of warriors who fought for the Ishin government during the Bakumatsu, a great war which took place from 1853 to 1868. Gensai was a short man with long hair, kind of like Kenshin and his main stance is a lot like Kenshin's, "the right leg is extended in front, knee slightly flexed, while the left leg is folded with the knee touching the ground. One slash with the right hand, and that's it." Anyways, Gensai unlike Kenshin was killed because the Meiji Government considered him a nuisance. I'm rambling... But the Hitokiri Battousai in the show Rurouni Kenshin changed his views, reversed his Katana(so it couldn't kill anyone) and became the wandering Rurouni who devoted his life to helping the weak to attone for his sins. One problem that arises from the beginning of the series, though, is that Kenshin has many adversaries who try to convert him back to his Hitokiri ways, and try to piss him off to accomplish this. Himura always seems to counter this by converting many of his enemies, and turning many of them into allies.

Episode length - Approximately 25 minutes each

Click to expand...

Ok..one question: did Kawakami Gensai had red hair? because Kenshin does, and i was always wondering how come Watsuki Nobuhiro made him a red head?? red hair just dont go with the "typical" 19th century japanese warrior's appearance. so, does red hair color have any symbolic meaning, like to make him to stand out of the crowd as a revolutionist? or something like that? hm?

nope, Kawakami Gensai didnt have red hair. (As my name sake as i resemble him a good deal ^_^x;;; and i obcessivly practice many styles of Kenjutsu combining different aspects to create a stlye similar to Furanui Kenjutsu) Black actually somewhat short he was often mistaken for a girl. but in reality he was a cold calculating man. he created a style of Kenjutsu called Furanui Kenjutsu. it was probably closer to Iaijutsu however because his main stance was a iai stance.

as for Kenshin having red hair...it was mainly to distinguish him. i mean if you said a short man with black hair and a cross scar, there could be thousands wandering japan at the time...so having red hair marked him out more.

nope, Kawakami Gensai didnt have red hair. (As my name sake as i resemble him a good deal ^_^x;;; and i obcessivly practice many styles of Kenjutsu combining different aspects to create a stlye similar to Furanui Kenjutsu) Black actually somewhat short he was often mistaken for a girl. but in reality he was a cold calculating man. he created a style of Kenjutsu called Furanui Kenjutsu. it was probably closer to Iaijutsu however because his main stance was a iai stance.

as for Kenshin having red hair...it was mainly to distinguish him. i mean if you said a short man with black hair and a cross scar, there could be thousands wandering japan at the time...so having red hair marked him out more.

is the hiten mitsurugi ryuu a real practice sword fighting technique?
and how about Saito´s? i´ve heard that it was a practiced sword technique long time ago in japan like in the tokugawa.. ne?
and Aoshi´s double sword technique... is it true too?

Hiten Mitsurgi Ryuu was rumored to be true but i can find no evidence of it being true. Saitou's Mizoguchiha Ittou Ryuu is a real school, although the school that most of the Shinsengumi trained at was Kondo Isami's School called Tennen Rishin Ryuu. as For Aoshi's Kodachi stlye. his particular style did not exist but schools like it did exist, there was a famous assassination that was done by a Kodachi Master.

wow... i am amazed with ur knowledge!!!.. that is totally awesome..
i wanna know more
and who was that kodachi master?O_O
i got a very old sword here at my house it belonged to my ancestors... ^^hehe i really like it... but do u think if i go to japan now with that sword on... will the police or governer prison me???O_O
i got a question about kenshins master... hiko... do u know who taught him the hiten mitsurugi ryuu???
misao

Kenshin's master, Hiko Seijurou the 13th, was taught by Hiko Seijurou the 12th. there are no names that are specific to the masters of the Hiten Mitsurugi Ryuu. Its a style with no ties to any specific place. when the student attained the Menkyo Kaiden Status the red and white cloak as well as the name was handed down to them. Generally, the previous master would die in the teaching of the Ougi, Amakakeru Ryuuno Hirameki.

as for your sword, wearing it in public, yes you would get arrested and it would be confiscated. now, there are japanese swords that are not allowed in Japan at all and they hardly are real Japaneses swords anyway. they are the bar stamp swords from World War II. the Nihon Government refuses to allow these swords into Japan because it signifies its recent militaristic past. now, i imagine that the sword your family has is probably 300 years old, if not older and would be considered ok to bring into Japan, but again, wearing it in public would create quite a stir.

as for the Kodachi Master...ill get his name for you. but itll be a while...im leaving on a trip for the next two weeks so, ill get it when get back

About Us

The Manga to Anime community has been around since 2 February 2001 and we pride ourselves on offering unbiased, critical discussion of manga and anime among people of all different backgrounds. We are working every day to make sure our community is one of the best.